Teen's Pokemon sales fuel BMW purchase

By MEGHAN PIERCEUnion Leader Correspondent

NORTH SWANZEY - As a child, Chadwicke Gordon collected Pokémon trading cards along with his older brother and sister.

As he and his siblings grew older the cards began collecting dust in a binder on a shelf. So the summer after the 8th grade, Gordon took the binder off the shelf and decided to sell some of the trading cards on eBay.

Before he knew it the money was rolling in and he had to tell his parents what he was doing.

"They had no idea until I started getting a bunch of money coming in."

His parents were impressed though and now think of him as a smart business man, he said.

The business can be time-consuming, he said, and it led to him spending time hunting for more cards to sell.

"If it's a good deal, then I just buy it," he said. "If it's like a good price, I can buy it and turn it around and sell it."

Four years later, the 18-year-old and senior at Keene High School drives a 2000 BMW he bought with his earnings. Over the years he has sold thousands of cards online, he said.

The biggest sale was over $2,000 for 50 unopened packs of 11 Pokémon trading cards he sold to someone in a Finnish country.

The "unsealed" cards are worth the most, he said.

First edition holographic Pokémon cards can also sell for $250 each.

Most of his sales, though, were for $5 or $10.

The BMW cost him $5,000, which was all his card selling earnings, he said.

"I saved up and I bought it last spring."

He took a part-time job at Shaw's to pay for his car insurance, but still continues to make money selling cards online.

After graduation this spring, Gordon wants to attend Keene State College and study business, accounting or criminal justice.